Film-handling apparatus.



G. R MACOMBER. FILM HANDLING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 17. I917.

Patented Aug. 28; 191?.

fl Z I III I 28 J6 I o 4E I 2/ O i 60 5 Z v: v 2 27 26 g i 7 X 5 Q 11 l i 1. I re 1 20 @fimt'mew WWWMAM GEORGE E. MAOOMBER, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

FILM-HANDLING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 28, 191?.

Application filed February 1'7, 191?. Serial No. 149,330.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE R. MACOMBER, a citizen of theUnited States, and resident of Washington, in the District of Columbia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Film-Handling Apparatus of which the following is a specification, re erence being had therein to the accompanying drawing. 7

It is Often desired to use a picture film repeatedly without rewinding and frequently desirable, to repeat, automatically, the projection of pictures upon a long film in such manner as to afford a continuous display for an indefinite time. It is possible to form a short film into an endless band and to use this without winding, to produce a continuous display, but with a film as long as the.

film of an ordinary reel this method is not practicable.

To avoid the difliculty suggested is the object of this invention, and with this object in view a film-of any length is made into an endless band and then woundand unwound in a peculiar way by the use of novel mechanism.

In theaccompanying drawings, which are largely diagrammatic,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of apparatus for making use of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a'section on the line 2-2, Fig. 1.

In these views, where parts not essential to an understanding of the invention are omitted, 10 represents the body of a rigid vertical plate or supporting frame, 11 'a trough-like support for a loose roll of film 18. 12 any suitable source of projecting light, 13 and 14 upper and lower film sprocket drums for carrying films properly across the path of a beam from said source, 16, 17 guide rollers for the film. The film band is grasped at any suitable point and the parts upon each side of that point are wound together into a roll containing all the film except enough to pass around the rollers and sprocket drums and form the usual loop to allow feed movements of the usual kind. The lower sprocket drum is driven in an suitable way, as by a belt pulley 21 on its s aft and upon the same shaft is second pulley 22 from which a belt 23 drives a drum 24 having shaft 25. which may slide longitudinally in the drum but cannot rotate relatively thereto. This shaft carries a film engaging device shown as a at fork 20 having a, series of circularly arand if the machine ranged parallel prongs which normally proect into the path of the film in such manner that the film lies between the prongs or tines of the fork. The roller 16 is mounted upon a shaft centrally pivoted at 27 and the end of the shaft opposite the drum is hinged to the end of a centrally pivoted lever 28 having its otherwise free end 40 pivoted to the end of a lever 29 which bears at its opposite end a segmental gear 30 adapted to be thrown, by longitudinal movement of the lever 29, into engagement with a worm gear 31 on the shaft 32 of a motor 33. The lever 29 is in slotted engagement with pins 50 projecting from a block 34 loosely mounted upon the shaft 25 between a head or stop 35 and a fixed bearing 36 in which the shaft works. If the fork be engaged with that part of the film between the roller 17 and the roll 18 be operated, the rotating fork winds upon itself the portion of the film coming and also a portion coming to it from the roll 18, while another part from said roll passes, at the same rate, around the roller 16 and thence to the upper sprocket drum.

This continues until the roll 18 is used when the portion of the filmpassing to the roller 16 is pulled by the fork and thereby the roller shaft is swung upon its pivot and the lever 29 is moved longitudinally bringing the segmental gear into engagement with the worm, when the motor quickly swings the lever and with it the block 3 1- and the shaft 25 with the fork 20. This movement of the fork withdraws it from the plane of the film allowing the newly formed roll to drop and replace the roll 18 and at the same time ends the pull of the film upon the roller 16, when springs 26, 42 restore the parts to initial position. This operation is repeated indefinitely.

In this apparatus, as in other motion picture machines, the driving belts are such as to slip under undue tension.

What I claim is: a

1.. The combination with mechanism for feeding an endless film strip, of a film engaging and winding device, means for rotating said ,device to form thereon a roll of doubled film and means for reciprocating said device axially at predetermined times to discharge the roll thereon and rengage the film strip at another point.

from the lower sprocket drum '2. The combination with a rotary film engaging and winding device arranged to move laterally with respect to the general plane of an endless film strip to be wound, means for rotating said device to form about it a roll of doubled film, automatic means for withdrawing said device axially from the roll formed thereon allowing the latter to drop, and automatic means for rengaging said device with the film at a different point.

3. The combination with mechanism for feeding an endless picture film, from a previously formed loose roll, past an exposure point, of a rotating fork for engaging the film coming from said point and forming about the fork a roll of doubled film the other part of which comes from said loose roll, means whereby the pullupon the film when said loose roll is exhausted causes the rotary fork to release the roll thereon and end said pull, and means for quickly returning the mechanisms to initial positions.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature.

GEORGE R. MACOMBER. 

